The Atlanta Falcons made it fun at the end by almost coming back to win against the New Orleans Saints with three great onside kicks, but came up short. The Saints won this one, 26-18, but the game shouldn’t have even been this close.

Winner: K Younghoe Koo

The Falcons kicker missed his second kick just before the half. And the Falcons would have been completely done for because of them. But with three consecutive great onside kicks, Younghoe Koo gave the Falcons a chance to get back into the game. Koo even hit a couple of field goals after his early misses to give Atlanta a solid chance.

Loser: Falcons offensive line

Not only were the Falcons poor in pass protection, allowing nine sacks on the night, but they were atrocious in run blocking, averaging just 2.95 yards per carry in the run game. The Falcons need to get their offensive line healthy and have better coaching up front to make a difference in 2020. This is the biggest issue with the team right now.

Winner: LB Foye Oluokun

Foye Oluokun had himself a day in Atlanta. He did a good job against the run making open field tackles and was also exceptional in coverage despite not getting many opportunities. Not only was Oluokun impressive on defense, but his special teams play as a gunner and his two onside kick recoveries on back-to-back attempts were amazing as well. He even contributed to another onside kick recovery by knocking it out of Michael Thomas’ hands.

Loser: QB Matt Ryan

The Falcons had two chances to get back into the game in the third and early fourth quarters that were ended by poor play by Matt Ryan. It’s rare when he’s put as a loser on this list, but he did not have a good game against the Saints. He even had another fumble on a drive with 9 minutes left that sealed the game. Outside of the touchdown pass to Jaeden Graham and a 18-yard completion to Calvin Ridley, the franchise QB let the team down today.

Winner: LB Deion Jones

In coverage, Deion Jones had one of his best games of the season, breaking up multiple passes. He also played very well against the run, tackling Saints running backs and preventing huge plays. Jones has shown that he was worth that contract extension the Falcons signed him to. He just needs to give this kind of effort every week in future seasons.

Loser: RB Devonta Freeman

Volume was the name of the game for Devonta Freeman in this one. His pass blocking was atrocious all game. He also didn’t produce well despite being force fed the ball 21 times. The offensive line didn’t do him any faovors, but he only gained 64 yards and didn’t score a touchdown in this game. There’s a point where you just have to cut your losses, and that point may be very soon with Freeman based on production.

Ultimate Loser: HC Dan Quinn and OC Dirk Koetter

In what was one of the worst called games of the season, Dirk Koetter and Dan Quinn showed why they should be shown the door. At this point, cut the losses, give the reigns to Greg Knapp on offense, Jeff Ulbrich on defense and Raheem Morris as head coach.

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